If Rice lives up to his billing, he could blend with a veteran cast to make the Hurricanes a good bet to make a fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.

Among national ratings, Bob Gibbons regards Rice as the 19th-best player in the nation. Prepstar magazine ranks him as the No. 2 small forward in the nation.

Rice averaged 25.8 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 2.1 blocks per game as a high school senior and led Jackson (Miss.) Lanier to a 31-7 record and Class 4A state runner-up finish. As a junior, Rice averaged 21 points and 7.0 rebounds while leading Lanier to a Class 5A state title.

In the McDonald's All-Star game on March 29 in Boston, Rice had 20 first-half points, including four 3-pointers. He ended with 24 points, hitting 9 of 18 shots, including 4 of 8 from 3-point range.

Rice, who is also a Parade All-American, chose the Hurricanes over Kentucky, Arkansas, Memphis and Mississippi. Kentucky thought it had an oral commitment from Rice twice, the last time as recently as April. The Wildcats also thought Rice was considering going directly to the NBA.

But Rice cited Hamilton and the Hurricanes' recent success (three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and a Sweet 16 berth this year) as reasons for choosing to attend UM.

"During my visit I felt very comfortable with Coach Hamilton and liked the team's family atmosphere," Rice said. "The Hurricanes are also one of the nation's up-and-coming programs."

Rice's signing boosts the outlook for the Hurricanes, who lost seniors Vernon Jennings, Johnny Hemsley and Mario Bland.

But now, the UM frontcourt could be considered among the best in the Big East. The 'Canes will feature 6-9 forward Elton Tyler, 6-7 forward John Salmons, 6-9 center Dwayne Wimbley and 6-7 forward Leroy Hurd among their top returnees, as well as freshmen Rice and 6-10 forward-center Reo Logan, who is from suburban Chicago.

UM has also addressed its shortage of backcourt players. In addition to returning junior Paulo Coelho and sophomores Michael Simmons and James Jones, UM signed freshmen Joe Gordon of Palm Bay and Rashid Dunbar of Bayonne, N.J.

Rice, the Mississippi Gatorade Player of the Year, is also an excellent student. He plans on majoring in computer engineering, has a 3.9 grade-point average and received his school's science and mathematics award.